


The Adventures of Toddler Moana

by Nariva



Category: Moana (2016)
Genre: Active Ocean, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comfort, Congrats Tamatoa You Made Me Have To Change The Rating, Crying, Cute Kids, Gen, Kid Fic, My First Work in This Fandom, No Romance, Ocean Ex Machina, Protective Ocean, Short, The Power Of Being A Cute Kid, Threats of Violence, Toddler Moana, Unprepared Babysitters Maui and Ocean, child endangerment, protective maui
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 05:00:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23619412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nariva/pseuds/Nariva
Summary: Te Kā's reach is far and wide in its hunt for the heart of Te Fiti, forcing the Ocean to rescue the young Moana when she's first offered the heart. Maui is not prepared for the Ocean to plop a toddler in front of him.
Relationships: Maui & Moana Waialiki, Maui & Ocean (Disney: Moana), Ocean & Moana Waialiki
Comments: 38
Kudos: 79





	1. Chapter 1

The Ocean watched as the little girl reached for the heart, her chubby little fingers curling around the stone. She made a little sound of wonder, tracing the lines around it as the Ocean leaned in to watch her. It startled when she brought it to her mouth and chewed on it, quickly looping a strand of itself around the end of the heart to tug it out. The little girl pouted at it. It reached out and gently brushed against her cheek, and the little human giggled as she touched the water. The Ocean adjusted the flower in her hair and felt along the sand to pull more sea shells toward the girl. It seemed that she like them if her excited shrieks at the sight of them was anything to go by and the Ocean let its waves ripple with happiness as the girl toddled toward the gathered gifts. The Ocean paused in its search for more as it felt the sand shift, briefly turning from the human to observe the strange movement beneath itself. The sand bulged upward, the Ocean drawing itself back in surprise at the heat radiating from it. The sand darkened and cracked, elongating as it spread outward. Wrong. The Ocean held itself up from the strange patch of blackening sand, following after it as it began to pick up speed. _Wrong_. The shifting sands began to widen as black brightened to a burning red, the Ocean startling as its pace quickened. Where was it going-?

 _The human_!

The Ocean surged around her, lifting the girl as quickly and gently as it could. She laughed as it held her high and tugged her back with it, the human holding tightly onto the heart as she playfully patted at the water with her free hand. The Ocean looked back to the shoreline - the strange sand turned in lazy circles there, showing no intent to leave. The Ocean stretched out to move the child off to the right. If it could put her on land her people would come for her- The sand followed its movements, keeping pace with it easily even as it swerved to the left and zigzagged with the human. The little girl giggled as she raised her hands high, her thick hair swaying with the motion as the Ocean drew back from the shoreline. The sand waited. The Ocean's waves shuddered in ill ease. The child went back to chewing on the heart of Te Fiti, and the Ocean tugged it out of her mouth again as it finally settled on its decision. Turning from the island, it carried her away.


	2. Chapter 2

Maui sighed as he sat back and patted at the sand with his hands. Bored. He was so _bored_. His stomach growled and he sighed as he pushed himself up. More coconuts. Always coconuts. He was sick of coconuts! The tattoo of himself crawled up his chest and laid out flat on his shoulder, heaving a heavy sigh.

"Yeah," he muttered, starting toward where the tall trees swayed at the edge of the shore. Coconuts. Once he got off this island he was _never eating them again_. Ever. He'd nearly made it to the trees when his tattoo leapt to its feet and tried to tug at his shoulder, frantically pointing out towards the ocean. He frowned at he looked, his eyes widening when the waves pulled back and rose. Oh no, not again! The man had halfway turned to sprint for cover when high laughter made him freeze. The demigod stared as a _child_ appeared at the top of the crest, the little girl giggling as she slapped her little hands in the waves. The ocean unfurled, gently pushing the girl forward until she sat at his feet.

What.

Maui stared down at her.

What?

"What?" He asked the ocean, looking from her to it and back again. She had to lean back to look up at him, her laughter stopping as she looked him up and down in confusion. A glint of green made him look at her fisted hand, and the man knelt before her. She went wide eyed when he took the green stone and lifted it to the sunlight, somehow managing to look utterly betrayed as he studied the - wait. That green. That spiral. It was - it was the heart of Te Fiti! He hurriedly thrust it back into her chubby little hands, scrambling away from her to watch as the toddler cradled it to her chest and glared at him. Movement to his left made Maui turn as a wave raced across the beach and surged up around the palm tree closest to them. He winced at the sound of wood cracking, watching as the ocean tugged the tree out into the water. It turned toward the girl and swept her up again, rumbling across the sand towards - No! Maui turned and ran, thrashing in the water when it caught him and pulled him out into the depths.

"No, no, no!" He yelled at it, slamming his fists against the ocean even though he knew it wouldn't help. "Let me go!" It raised him high, and he sucked a sharp breath in as it plopped him down onto the trunk of the tree. The waters carefully deposited the little girl in front of him, moving to help her stay upright as she tilted with the bobbing. "Put me back," he ordered the ocean, feeling panic rise when it instead began to tug them further out. He took a deep breath and twisted to fall into the water, kicking his feet as he tried to swim back to the island. He took it back, he'd eat coconuts for the rest of his life if it meant not dealing with the heart! The water tightened around him, plopping him back onto the trunk. He tried again. He was put back on the trunk. Again. Again. He sighed as he brushed the water off his face, accepting defeat as he crossed his arms. The little girl was staring at him, her mouth slack with astonishment. He wasn't expecting the giggles, the human laughing as she tipped back. The water tilted her back up, and she pointed a tiny finger at him as she clutched the heart.

"Again!" The girl demanded, "again!"

"No," he told her, trying to ignore her giggles as he glared at the ocean. "Who is she?" He asked it. "What is this, why does she have the heart?" The water rippled, the likeness of Te Kā rising from the waves to mimic reaching for both the girl and the heart. It reformed into little figures of himself and the girl, a makeshift mountain extending up before them. Their shapes toddled across the waves and reached the mountain, the water child very pointedly holding up an orb meant to be the heart before she placed it in the mountain. "Wait..." The shapes splashed down, the ocean extending towards him as he pieced it all together. "You... you want me to take her to restore the heart!?" It nodded. "But - you're crazy," he insisted, shoving off the trunk to sink into the water. It plopped him back onto the wood, the girl laughing at him as the ocean resumed tugging the tree away from his island. "I can't do anything against Te Kā!" He tried to reason with it, "I don't even have my fishhook!" It did pause at that, turning a wave to stare at him. Maui sighed. "Tamatoa has it-" He startled as the tree twisted to the left, hanging on as tightly as he could as it lightly skipped across the surface. Of course the ocean would know where the crab was. Of course it would.


	3. Chapter 3

His first time off that Gods forsaken island and this was what he had to deal with. The demigod threw his head back and sighed, watching the sun above. Yawning, he hooked his legs around the trunk and leaned back to rest against it. Maui shut his eyes, trying to find the rocking of the tree lulling as he thought about his hook. It’d be so great to have it again - he’d never be stranded with its power. He could almost imagine the familiar feel of-! The trunk slammed to a halt, Maui gasping as the stop nearly flung him forward. His hands shot out, and he caught himself before he slammed face first into the trunk.

“Hey, what’s the big idea!?” he asked, only to stare as the Ocean plopped the little girl back on the trunk. She looked at him and laughed as she purposefully slid sideways off it, the water hurriedly putting her back on. Clutching the heart in her fist, the toddler leaned forward to face plant into the ocean, and Maui couldn’t help but smile at her peals of laughter as the water gently pushed her back up. It circled around her to keep her in place, resuming tugging the tree along as the child splashed in the water.

His smile brightened when, after some time, they finally began to slow. He shaded his face as he looked up at the towering rock structure - the path to the Realm of Monsters. The Ocean tugged them to the side of it, and Maui stood and reached for the nearest hand hold, pulling himself up as he relished the stretch each move brought. Being stuck on that little island hadn’t given him much opportunity to stay active, and he appreciated the way he had to push himself to climb higher and higher.

“Bye bye!” The little girl called out to him, and Maui startled as the Ocean pushed her up past him.

“Hey, that’s not fair!” he protested, but both the girl and the water ignored him as he huffed and continued to climb. Reaching the top, Maui brushed his arms and legs off as he rolled to his feet and eyed the entrance. The child toddled around the circular opening, squatting to questioningly poke at the lower set rocks. “You got it, kid,” he said, sucking a deep breath in to blow away the layer of dust. She coughed and flailed in the resulting cloud, and he could almost feel the Ocean glare at him as he stepped out onto the nose. Chanting to the skies, Maui leaped up and slammed his arms against the rounded rock, grinning when the opening slid open. He was that much closer to his fish hook! Without bothering to look at the others, the demi God jumped down into the dark abyss.

He threw his head back and laughed as the air rushed past, sucking a breath in as he plunged into the cold watery funnels to the Realm. When Maui fell through the bottom, he caught himself on a stretched out vine and twirled upward with the motion, tucking his knees to his chest as he spun. The demi God grinned to himself as he stuck his landing, smoothing his hair back as he looked down at the little tattoo of himself.

“And he sticks the landing,” he told it, tapping a finger to its chest, “I really am the best, aren’t I?” Maui frowned when it ignored him and looked up, the little figure suddenly frantically pointing upward. “What, dumb dumb? There’s no way the Ocean’s going to actually let-” Something small smacked against his head, and Maui watched with utter horror as the child tumbled away and disappeared down the side of the plateau. _What_? His tattoo hammered against his chest and pointed in the direction she’d fallen, but Maui didn’t need any encouragement to sprint to the edge and look down. Lumps of dark pink and orange vegetation grew on the sides of the rock, but he didn’t see any sign of the toddler. Oh. Oh Gods. Praying, Maui began his crawl down the side.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just giving everyone a heads up that Tamatoa is going to outright state that he wants to eat Moana. He's also going to try to, but that's *super definitely not going to happen.*  
> Still, I'm sorry if that makes anyone uncomfortable.

Where _was_ she? Maui crept through the undergrowth, following the tiny tracks her little feet had made. He’d crawled down as fast as possible - how had the human gotten so far? Clearly they’d need to make something to hold onto her with when he got them back to the surface. Maui pushed his way through the thick, wavy grass, eyeing the massive clam shell off to his left. Could she have gone that way? Maybe. He made his way to the outside of the shell, moving as quietly as possible as he looked for the child. He’d need to put her somewhere safe before he went looking for Tamatoa - the crab wouldn’t hesitate to swallow the human whole if he got the chance. His stomach gave an uncomfortable squeeze at the thought, and Maui shook the it from his head as he walked along the bend.

“Kid,” he tried to whisper call, looking around the patches of sea grass. “ _Kid_.” He walked slower as he neared some sort of entrance to the shell, freezing when he heard a voice come from within.

“How did you get down here, little human?” he heard Tamatoa ask. The demigod slapped a hand to his face. Of course. Of _course_. The last place the kid needed to be and she was there. Tiptoeing forward, Maui stealthily entered the clam shell, creeping along until he reached the wider opening. He peered out, watching with wide eyes as the massive crab towered over the child. His heart leaped into his throat when Tamatoa reached down, plucking the girl up with his pincer to lift her to his eye level. Wide eyed, the child stared at him as he examined her. “Aren’t you just a tiny little thing,” the crab muttered to himself, turning her left and right. The girl frowned at him, pointedly kicking her legs to be set down. A small part of Maui was tempted to nervously giggle - she didn’t know how much danger she was in!

“Down,” the little girl demanded. “Pu’ me down!”

“Down?” Tamatoa asked, and the demigod shivered at the purr in his voice. “There are so _many_ ways to go _down_ , little human, are you sure you want to?” Oblivious to the threat, she crossed her arms and glared at him.

“Down!” Maui edged out along the wall, crouching to sneak along the curve as he kept an eye on the girl. There! Tamatoa shifted, lifting her higher, and the demigod saw his hook. It had been placed in the center of the crab’s back, not an easy thing to reach. Clamoring onto the rough edges, Maui began to climb, praying Tamatoa’s boastful nature would give him the time he needed. If he could just reach his hook!

“I wonder,” the gaudy crab mussed to himself, “should I eat you with the fish, or should you be dessert?" The little girl frowned at him, looking confused.

“Fish?” she repeated, looking around, “where is fish?” Maui ducked down, praying she hadn’t spotted him on the ledge. When she looked back at the crab the demigod crouched, trying to judge the distance he’d have to leap.

“You’re right,” Tamatoa said, chuckling to himself, “why not indulge myself and have dessert first?” No, _no_! Maui watched in utter horror as the crab stretched his pincer out, opening his mouth wide as he held her high over him.

“Stop!” He yelled, throwing caution to the wind as he leaped toward the crab. His hook! He landed hard on Tamatoa’s shell, wincing as the crab’s many decorations dug into his skin. The demigod pushed himself up, trying to get his footing as the crab gasped in surprise. He just _needed his hook_ \- A low rumble made the crab sway, forcing Maui to scramble to stay on his shell as the decapod looked around in confusion.

“What was-”

Water roared down through the opening of the clam shell, sweeping them all up as it swirled back the way it'd came. Maui clapped his hands over his mouth as the speed made his vision blur. Bright lights flashed by, a dizzying mix of gold and purple as they were yanked back up through the entrance to the realm of monsters. Maui landed hard when the Ocean thrust him out, rolling to his knees as he looked up at it. It gently placed the child at his side and then turned its attention back to the struggling crab. Massive watery fingers curled around Tamatoa as it held him upside down and gave him a firm shake. Stray bits of gold rained down on the two as it gave him another shake, the demigod reaching up to catch his hook when it fell towards him. The crab gave an indignant shriek as he was thrust back down through the hole into the realm of monsters, Maui swallowing as the Ocean reemerged and firmly shoved the stone covering back in place.

It turned, lowering itself down to the little girl’s height before radiating sheer disappointment. The girl ducked her head at that, her hands curling tight around the heart as she stared at the ground. Maui tried his hardest not to move, feeling strange at being very happy that he wasn’t the center of attention for once. The girl took a breath, letting it blow out in a big sigh as she looked up at the Ocean.

“I… I sorry,” she finally admitted, her shoulders hunching. Water rippled down to gently brush against her cheek, Maui breathing a sigh of relief as the Ocean pooled around them and lowered them back down to the waiting tree.

“Thanks,” he told it as they were tugged back out into the low waves. “If you hadn’t pulled us up…” Maui shivered even in the heat of the sun, looking at the child. “Thank you.” He was surprised when it brushed across his cheek, just like it had with the girl. He blinked. Was it… trying to comfort him? Maui smiled at the thought, reaching up to pat the water. “Thanks,” he murmured. It nodded, drawing back to return to tugging them along as he looked down at his hook. He almost couldn’t believe he had it again. After so long… The demigod hugged his long lost treasure, closing his eyes as he enjoyed the moment.


	5. Chapter 5

Learning that he was a _bit_ rusty on his transformations had been embarrassing - thank the gods the girl wasn't old enough to realize that he was having trouble. Thankfully their pace was allowing him time to practice, the child thrilled at all the forms he was taking. Maui swooped low across the waves, tucking his wings in close to his body to circle tightly around the tree and the human. Flaring his wings, the demigod stretched out his claws for his landing. His talons dug deep into the bark, and he steadied himself before transforming back into his human shape. The little girl clapped at that, the sincerest applause he'd gotten in, well, a _long_ time. Maui grinned, bowing to her before he sat back down.

"Birdie!" she declared, and he chuckled at that and shook his head.

"No, Maui." He patted a hand against his chest. "Maui."

"Maui," she repeated, "birdie Maui!"

"No, kid, Maui. _Just_ Maui," he insisted. Mm. He'd never actually gotten her name, had he. "Kid, what's your name?"

"Me?"

"Yeah, you," he nodded. "What're you called?"

"Moana!" she cheerfully informed him.

"That's a good name, Moana," Maui told her. She grinned at him, going back to chewing on the heart of Te Fiti.

"So," he looked to the water below him, "that's not going to _actually_ hurt the heart, is it?" The ocean shrugged and reached down to tug it out of her mouth again. Moana pouted at that, crossing her arms.

"No fun," she told the Ocean. Maui smirked at that, nodding as he looked at the waves around them. He frowned when they suddenly slowed, the tree gently bobbing along as the Ocean tugged them forward as quietly as possible. Why had-? Oh. Maui stared out at the distant charred islands to their right, at the blackened tree stumps and sooty beaches. Well. They'd gotten to Te Ka way faster than he'd expected. The little girl picked up on the change, shuffling around to stare at the ruined islands. 

"I think we're here, kid," he told her, freezing as the blackened beaches shifted. Maui could feel his throat go dry as they stretched upward, red heat crackling through dark sand as Te Ka rose to its full height. For the first time since he'd met the child, Moana paled at the sight of the demon. She let out a low whimper, toddling across the log to clutch at him.

"Yeah, kid," he whispered, staring up at the demon, "it sure is scary looking." Little hands reached up, making grabbing motions even he could understand. Picking the child up, Maui scooted back across the trunk until he reached the ragged remains of the fronds. Setting her down amongst them, Maui gave Moana the best smile he could manage as he gently took the heart from her. "Wish me luck, Moana," he murmured, his hand tightening on his hook as he looked up at the towering demon. He took a breath and let it out, looking down at his tattoo as it tapped at his chest. The little ink figure gave him a thumbs up. "Thanks," he told it, eyes narrowing as he looked back up at the fiery being. "Let's do this."

The demigod sprinted across the tree and leapt into the air, transforming into his favored bird form as he glided over the waves and flew at the unaware creature's back. He didn't _want_ to fight the demon, but he really didn't think it was going to let him just return the heart to Te Fiti right under its nose. Letting loose a war shriek, he racked his claws up the back of the being's back. Trying to ignore the stifling heat, Maui wheeled about at the demon screamed in surprised pain and turned to face him. Flapping his wings as hard as he could, Maui flew under a grasping hand and angled for its face. Transforming back into his human form, the demigod slashed his hook across the massive cheek he passed by. The demon wailed, clapping a hand to the deep cut as he fell and transformed again. He tucked his wings close to his body, dropping fast to spread them right before he hit the waves.

Maui sucked a breath in as he dodged the demon's attempt to grab him, racking his talons across the back of its hand as he beat his wings to rise. Instead of drawing back in pain, the creature swept its hand up and knocked him aside. He flailed for one wild moment, the world a sickening blur before his eyes before smoldering fingers curled around him. He struggled in the demon's grasp, but the creature held him tight. Maui was lifted higher, and he swallowed as massive flaming eyes narrowed as it looked him over. Pinching him between its thumb and pointer finger, the magma demon reached for his wing and pulled it as far as he could extend it, the demigod wincing at the intense heat. He transformed the wing, fingers clenching around the heart as the demon snarled at him.

" _Birdie_ _Maui_ ," Moana's little voice cried out, startling him, _"no_!"


	6. Chapter 6

The demon paused at that, slowly turning to look in the direction of her voice. No! Maui struggled in its grasp and raked his blunted fingernails across what cracked skin he could reach in an attempt to distract it. The demon didn't even glance at him.

"Ocean, take her and run!" The log she sat on only bobbed a little more aggressively as the Ocean oddly hesitated. "What're you doing!? Get her out of here!" The little girl swallowed and then pointed a trembling finger up at him.

"Give... give back," she raised her voice to be heard. "Pu' down. Birdie Maui," she reached for him with both hands now as her fingers made little grabbing motions. "Give Birdie Maui! Give... give..." Maui watched in absolute horror as her small face scrunched up and she took a shuddering breath. "Maui. Give..." The little girl burst into tears. The demigod shifted in the demon's hold and tried to reach for her but he was just too far away. Her sobs grew louder as the fiery demon stared down at her, her face slowly going red as her shoulders shook. "Birdie Maui," the little girl cried, " _I wa' Maui_!" The oppressive heat around him slowly faded, bright red cooling to dark black as the demon stared down at her. The traitorous water parted for the being when it began to walk towards the girl and Maui cursed as he kicked and scratched at the hand that held him. What was the Ocean _doing_!?

"Te Ka!" He shouted, slamming his fists as hard as he could against black skin. "Face me! Fight me!" It didn't even glance at him, large red eyes fixed on the girl as it neared her. "Moana, run!" He yelled at the girl. She was too busy crying her eyes out. Maui went back to trying to scratch his way out. He had to get free, stop this, _save Moana_! The demon stood tall over the child and then leaned down to get a closer look at her.

"Bad!" Moana yelled up at the demon through her tears. "You..." she took a shuddering breath, "you meanie! Give Maui back! Give back!" The demon recoiled at bit at that, its red eyes widening. Like she'd hurt it somehow. How? Why? Maui couldn't understand. The fingers clenched around his waist loosened slightly and then he was being lowered back down towards the girl. What. The demon put him down next to her.

What.

And looked at the child like it was hoping that'd make things better.

What.

The hot red flames had even been banked, leaving only dark, cracked skin and the demon looking mildly less terrifying. Moana grabbed his leg, holding onto him as tightly as she could. She took shuddering breaths as her cries slowly died down. He kneeled and picked her up, holding her close as she clung to him.

"Hey," he gently rocked her, "I'm ok. It's ok, Moana. The big fire demon let me go, I'm fine." Little arms hooked around his neck and locked as she buried her face in his shoulder. Maui reached up, running a hand through her wavy hair as he tried to calm her. He wasn't lying - he really was fine. Why? Maui looked up at the massive demon towering over them. Why had it let him... go... He saw it then, a graceful line curving down it's chest. The line spiraled inward, coming to a stop at a small opening.

He looked down at the heart and then back up at the hole.

The demon... _Te Fiti_?


End file.
